Hello all, I have pulled my trillium out of the back yard and started to get her ready for another summer. Was wondering if any one with a trillium or other glass egg has put a canoe on top. Thinking of picking one up this year. Worried about the extra possible shacking and load on the roof. Thanks Ian

I had problems in my 1300 when I installed a Fantastical Fan in place of the vent.
I had to jack the roof up against the weight of the fan,and that is not very much weight.

It concerned me enough that I did not try the same thing with my 4500.
I would think the way to do it would be to spread the weight out to the roof/side area so there is more than just the flat roof surface to provide support.
This of course would imply attaching thru the shell.
My favorite feature of the Trills may have been that there are no real shell thru holes except for the awning supports.

I've seen roof racks mounted directly to the frame on Jeeps, why not the same thing on an egg. Not to mention the extra attachment points you'd gain front and rear for things like bicycles. You could mount it to the frame rails in front, and the bumper in the rear, and never have to worry about through-hulls. If you built it stout enough, you could make a basket up top (easy on the loading, might get top heavy and tip), or be comforted in knowing that it would offer a little protection from falling branches.

Hello all, I have pulled my trillium out of the back yard and started to get her ready for another summer. Was wondering if any one with a trillium or other glass egg has put a canoe on top. Thinking of picking one up this year. Worried about the extra possible shacking and load on the roof. Thanks Ian

Ian,

From reading posts in this thread and others, the Trill doesn't have a very well reinforced roof.

You didn't mention your tow vehicle, but if it's a pickup, van or SUV, it would be better to carry the canoe on the tow rather than the Trill. There are even carriers for sedans.

I carry my canoe on a trak rack on my pick up when hauling the camper and on roof racks when I just take the Subaru outback coup.
I also have seen where people have welded 3/4 pipe onto front and rear bumpers of Jeep CJ's and made racks to haul canoes and if there were no other option to haul canoe on TV I would go this route.
Gerry

Hello all, I have pulled my trillium out of the back yard and started to get her ready for another summer. Was wondering if any one with a trillium or other glass egg has put a canoe on top. Thinking of picking one up this year. Worried about the extra possible shacking and load on the roof. Thanks Ian

I've seen roof racks mounted directly to the frame on Jeeps, why not the same thing on an egg... You could mount it to the frame rails in front, and the bumper in the rear, and never have to worry about through-hulls...

I think this is the type of system which Thomas Haney put on his Skimp, as discussed in the topic linked by Frederick: [b]Roof Rack, on top of a 13 Scamp. It makes sense to me, to the extent that any structure this large on a lightweight trailer, and any rack so far off the ground, can make sense.

__________________1979 Boler B1700RGH, pulled by 2004 Toyota Sienna LE 2WDInformation is good. Lack of information is not so good, but misinformation is much worse. Check facts, and apply common sense liberally.STATUS: No longer active in forum.

I think this is the type of system which Thomas Haney put on his Skimp, as discussed in the topic linked by Frederick:

Yes, but Thomas Haney did [b]NOT put that rack over the top of his Scimp to use it as a load bearing rack...he built it to [b]lift up the shell because it was sagging. If I remember right, it was made out of conduit. Unless an individual carries a ladder, for the most part these trailers are too tall to effectively use the top as a place to carry stuff. Although like anything, it would be possible given enough time/money & effort....

Whether the rack is used to pull up the shell, or support a canoe, I just meant that it is the same general configuration: a separate external framework connected to the frame beyond the front and back ends of the body... like Rick's awning mount.

I agree that any trailer is too tall for this to be a great idea, and mine is tall enough that it's a lousy idea... but it is an answer to Paul's question.

I agree with the many people who have suggested that the roof of the tug is generally a much better place; however, even that may not be great. With my canoe on my Sienna, the stern would prevent use of the van's hatch, if I could ever get the thing up there in the first place. Canoes seem particularly bad, because they don't suit most boat loader designs well (they tend to assume a broad square stern), and tend to be bulky compared to kayaks. The traditional upturned bow and stern (downturned when inverted on the rack) can also get in the way of reasonable manual loading schemes.

__________________1979 Boler B1700RGH, pulled by 2004 Toyota Sienna LE 2WDInformation is good. Lack of information is not so good, but misinformation is much worse. Check facts, and apply common sense liberally.STATUS: No longer active in forum.

Ian, just home from three months in Florida with the 15' Sportspal on the roof of the Sienna. No problems at all but I'm glad even the 45lb weight wasn't resting on the Trill. I too have a wee sag in the roof where the Fan. Fan is placed. When I removed the extra roof to fit in the FF, I was amazed ( appalled??) at how thin the roof skin was.
The canoe didn't move on the roof...held down with two cam-lok straps from Can. Tire. ...fairly easy on & off too. It may also act as an air spoiler to cut down on the air resistance offered by the Trill...but I have no factual proof of that.
Happy paddlin'... Alistair

If you put racks at the front and back of an egg, all the concerns about sagging roofs would not apply - it's suspending loads like A/Cs in the middle of nearly-flat panels that causes the problems, it seems. Near the ends (or near the sides), the roof is much more capable of carrying vertical loads.

However, whether your canoe wants to be supported at two points so far apart is another matter.

I had problems in my 1300 when I installed a Fantastical Fan in place of the vent.
I had to jack the roof up against the weight of the fan,and that is not very much weight.

Hi Ed, I have been contemplating adding a MaxxFan or Fantastic Fan in the room of our 1300. The current vent is about 8 1/2" square, it a section that is slightly raised (I am assuming to add strength). Now to add one of the fans mentioned above I would have to make the opening larger, of course removing the raised up section. In your experience, would you say that the roof wouldn't be able to hold the wieght of the fan?

Hi Ed, I have been contemplating adding a MaxxFan or Fantastic Fan in the room of our 1300. The current vent is about 8 1/2" square, it a section that is slightly raised (I am assuming to add strength). Now to add one of the fans mentioned above I would have to make the opening larger, of course removing the raised up section. In your experience, would you say that the roof wouldn't be able to hold the wieght of the fan?

Thanks for sharing your valuble experience.

Well....What I did say was exactly what I experienced when doing this in my 1300.
The hole does need to be enlarged and the new fan wil be a lot heavier than the vent that comes out.

In mine the roof began to sag right away so I began looking for a solution right away.
I had been building shelves above the windows all the way around the trailer for some storage and it seemed a logical extension of that to try to gain some support from the new shelves.

The funny thing is that my 1300 also had an automotive sunroof installed over the bed area and while tis is much bigger and heavier than the fan the roo seemed much stronger and stiffer back there.

There is little question that the roof is thin and under supported where the vent is and removing the raised area did not help.

On the other hand,The fan was a big improvement and well worth any roof sag for me.